Popping up in a purpose-built pavilion on ETH Polyterrase for one month, Tastelab bills itself as a "Love affair between cooking and science." The brainchild of five friends who are all ETH alumni, the food/science mix is apt, since ETH Zurich is one of the world's top universities for science and technology.
At Tastelab you’ll get your dose of science with daily demos on things like espresso making, the alchemy of hollandaise sauce and how chocolate is crystallised. The cooking comes in several delicious forms. Book the seven-course dinner degustation or a weekend brunch, or pop by to sample the first-come-first-served daily changing lunch menu. There's also a cafe serving coffee and Friday nights are all about cocktails.
The impressive architect-designed structure of recycled wood and steel has huge windows and is the first of its kind to be built on the location. And what a location - perched high above central Zurich with amazing views of the city and lake and even its own dedicated quirky transport (catch the Polybahn up for the full experience). According to Tastelab’s Susanne Tobler, it took six months to gain permission from ETH to build here and the structure will be dismantled after the restaurant closes in early June. Let’s hope it becomes a tradition – Zurich’s own Serpentine Pavilion starts here?